TP Link Range Extender

I am attempting to connect my SONOS to a TP Link Range extender (dual band). I have hard wired the SONOS to the range extender and synced it to the WIFI signal. I was able to play music from Spotify from my phone through the speaker while it was hard wired to the range extender. As soon as I disconnect the speaker from the range extender, I can no longer connect to the SONOS speaker. The WIFI signal on my phone is great, but I still cannot connect. Please help.

6 replies

What do you mean by the term 'synced it to the WiFi signal', what did you do exactly?
Secondly, is the extender using the same WiFi SSID and channel as the main router and is that nearby? ... and finally ...
Which WiFi is your actual 'phone' using and what is the brand of that device, exactly?

If you have WiFi extenders around your place then usually it’s best (in my opinion) to run your sonos system in Boost Mode, as briefly mentioned in this thread...

Some Wifi Extenders and Repeaters do not 'sit well' alongside Sonos, though some can be made to work, if configured correctly, whilst operating Sonos in Boost Mode.

Ken,

Doesn't "Boost Mode" mean that Sonos is connected via Ethernet to a router? And if so, then what exactly does it mean that extenders can be "made to work"? (Would would "working" mean, in this context?)

I read the linked thread, but couldn't find answers.

Unless I missed something, I didn't see any discussion of range extenders in the context of Boost Mode.

Also, should the extender use the same SSID and channel as the main router? Or should those be different on the extender?

(I realize extenders are not officially supported by Sonos, but if there's a chance of one working, would it be with the same or different SSID and channel?)

The wireless extender has an Ethernet port for connecting devices on the extended network. Might it work for the Sonos to be connected to this via Ethernet? Or would a Sonos wired connection need to be directly to the main router?

Some Wifi Extenders and Repeaters do not 'sit well' alongside Sonos, though some can be made to work, if configured correctly, whilst operating Sonos in Boost Mode.

Ken,

Doesn't "Boost Mode" mean that Sonos is connected via Ethernet to a router? And if so, then what exactly does it mean that extenders can be "made to work"? (Would would "working" mean, in this context?)

Yes, 'Boost Mode' is where one Sonos device is cabled to the LAN. I would recommend using this setup if there are any wifi extenders/repeaters around the home as Sonos Spanning Tree Protocol will likely work much better than the extender/repeater signal in any case.

bobk2 wrote:

I read the linked thread, but couldn't find answers.

Unless I missed something, I didn't see any discussion of range extenders in the context of Boost Mode.

Also, should the extender use the same SSID and channel as the main router? Or should those be different on the extender?

Yes, the repeater is best set to the same channel and SSID, when you have Sonos running in Boost Mode it will not make any difference to the Sonos speakers, but in some cases, the controller device (particularly iOS devices) can sometimes see the signal from the extender/repeater as an entirely separate WiFi network, even though it has the same credentials. If that turns out to be the case, then I would suggest not using the same SSID, as then you will know when your mobile is connected to the main routers WiFi signal.

bobk2 wrote:

(I realize extenders are not officially supported by Sonos, but if there's a chance of one working, would it be with the same or different SSID and channel?)

The wireless extender has an Ethernet port for connecting devices on the extended network. Might it work for the Sonos to be connected to this via Ethernet? Or would a Sonos wired connection need to be directly to the main router?

Yes, there is more chance of it working, but remember too that it maybe the case that the mobile controlling device is seeing the extender/repeaters WiFi signal (even though it may have the same SSID etc.) as being a separate wifi network to the one being broadcast by the main router.

In my case, a wired connection to the repeater is a possibility, but I'm curious: have you heard of cases where Sonos works wirelessly with a repeater, with no issues?

I've seen a thread or two somewhere hinting that it can work, but they weren't entirely clear.

My main controller is an iPad Air 2, running the latest iOS. So it's great to be aware of the possible issues in advance.

Not sure if this is relevant to the current discussion, but FWIW, my music library is on a NAS connected to the network via Ethernet. I also stream to Sonos via AirPlay 2.

Thanks again!

Yes, I’m pretty sure some repeaters and extenders might work fine with Sonos, but I don’t actually use them myself. I can’t therefore recommend any to you etc, but maybe search the community here to find ones in threads that appear to be compatible.

If you are looking at an extender/repeater device, where it wirelessly connects to your router and broadcasts a wireless signal, then I do not really see the point in that, as it’s likely that a SonosNet STP signal will achieve the same, if not better, connection to your Speakers. So a Sonos 'Boost' setup may prove to be the better option. If you are looking for a WiFi extender that is perhaps cabled to the router and located elsewhere about the home, then I would ask the question as to why not simply add a switch at the far end of the connection and cable a speaker to the switch instead and eliminate the WiFi part completely. However it depends what other devices you may wish to connect at the remote location and where they are precisely located.

There is a feature too called a Sonos network 'matrix' which you may want to search for here in the community that will show useful information about the SonosNet connections between your devices and it shows if there is any interference around the Sonos speakers etc. and that can be a useful feature to explore aswell.

Anyway, I hope that helps and I hope you get the stable Sonos connection to your speakers that you are looking for.👍

If you are looking at an extender/repeater device, where it wirelessly connects to your router and broadcasts a wireless signal, then I do not really see the point in that, as it’s likely that a SonosNet STP signal will achieve the same, if not better, connection to your Speakers.

I'm considering putting Sonos speakers in a detached unit, so wiring directly to the router in the main house is not an option. The range extender would be connected to the router via Wi-Fi.